Mercury rising: India records highest temperature ever | CNN

(CNN)India recorded its highest ever temperature on Thursday when the heat in the town of Phalodi, in the western state of Rajasthan, shot up to a burning 51 degrees Celsius (123.8 degrees Fahrenheit).

It was the second day in a row the town experienced temperatures in excess of 50 degrees Celsius.Other towns in the state, like Churu, also recorded highs of about 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) on Thursday.In New Delhi, the capital city of India, the temperature reached nearly 47 degrees Celsius on Wednesday.Much-anticipated monsoon may not solve India's drought crisisThe previous temperature record in India was held by Alwar, also in Rajasthan, at 50.6 degrees Celsius (123.1 Fahrenheit) in 1956. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the highest temperature ever was recorded at 56.7 degrees Celsius (134 degrees Fahrenheit) in Death Valley, California on July 10, 1913.Rajasthan, home to the Thar desert, typically records the highest temperatures in India. Temperatures can soar as a result of incoming western winds from hot areas.